Crystal's Tale
by Mistress Soul
Summary: I'm Crystal, and I'm the Hero of Falconreach. Or at least, I used to be. I don't deserve that title anymore. **WARNING, CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR BOOK ONE, TWO AND THREE, READ AT YOUR OWN RISK**


My name is Crystal. And I'm the Hero of Falconreach. Or at least, I use to be. I don't deserve that title anymore.

You may have heard of me. More than likely, you're scornful towards my disappearance, saying that I abandoned the world, that I let the Rose rise into power, that I'm a failure. Heck, maybe you're even apart of the Rose. But what really hurts most is that all of that is true. I _did_ abandon the world. I _did_ let the Rose rise into power. And most of all, I _am_ a failure.

The entire adventure began in Oaklore, at the edge of a cliff. Heh, I don't think I'll ever be forgetting that day. The dragon, Twilly, Lady Celestia, the Black Dragon Box, and how I was the one "destined to save the world". If I wasn't so confused by the situation, I probably would of laughed. I was just a simple warrior back then. Just a simple adventurer.

Funny how things changed. I'm no simple warrior anymore. I'm a Soulweaver. A Riftwalker. A Ranger. A Dragonlord. I've learned several different fighting styles throughout my adventures. And yet still I fail. Funny how I was a lot more successful and competent when I was just a warrior.

Well, let me just cut to the chase of how this all began. While trying to protect the last orb left away from the clutches of Sepulchure and Drakath, Warlic exerted too much power. Unlike other mages, instead of losing mana when casting spells, he gained mana. Instead of dying though, he was split in half. The Professor was known as his human half, and his other half was none other than Wargoth.

Unfortunately, to merge the two halves back together, we needed the help of Xan, a insane pyromaniac and Jaania, an old friend of both Warlic and Xan. When we finally freed Jaania from her crystal prison, she wasn't the same anymore. Then again, if you found out you were frozen for who knows how long, and wake up to find forests burning down with one of your best friends having become a insane pyromancer with the other split in two, I don't think you'd be too emotionally stable, either. Jaania became bitter. Though she was once fascinated by magic, and a rather formidable ice mage herself, she had frozen me, Xan and Warlic into a block of ice out of rage and became the leader of a anti-magic organization. During the time I was frozen, the Rose had slowly risen into power, and Warlic and Xan were both forced into hiding, and plenty of other magic-users and creatures were also hiding from the cruel hands of the Rose. The way they would kidnap and torment people and creatures simply because they had magical origins...it filled me with such loathing and hatred. If they weren't stopped, the Rose would destroy Lore far more effectively than the Mysterious Stranger himself. It had taken five long years for me to break out.

But that's enough about the Rose. There are other things, too. And people I couldn't save...

Tomix. I remember first meeting him at Mogloween to stop Greed. When I asked how, he literally told me to die. I thought he was joking at first, but I was proven horribly wrong.

Ah, Tomix. I truly do miss him. He had grown to be such a brave, selfless strong man. He was a true hero, even willing to die for his cause.

I remember first seeing him in Ravenloss, helping him collect the keys, and meeting his soul ally, Aspar, who I later discovered was one of the spirits he was hunting down...Envy. It's a long complicated story. Let's just say he made a mistake when he was younger...

He did manage to banish Envy, but at the cost of his own life. I only wish there was a way to have saved him, but if he hadn't sacrificed himself, Envy would still be free, and he'd still be dead. It'd just take longer. Sacrificing himself right then and there was the only way to ensure the banishment of Envy. In his honor, I visit his grave in Mortem whenever I can, when I'm not busy attempting to fight off the Rose.

Then there are those like Artix, who was one of my old allies. I remember helping him track down the darkness orb and having Tomix extract it from Vayle's soul. I don't know where he is, though. All I remember is being told that he had helped a lot of people while I was gone.

Speaking of Artix, I sometimes wonder if Cinquefoil is Artix in disguise. The hairstyle, the eyes, they're so familiar. So much like Artix. If it's not Artix, then I suspect it might be Robina who also had brown hair and blue eyes...if only I knew. Everyone has changed so much. Ash, once considered a "noob" (whatever that met) by many, was now a master swordsman and was allied with a spirit of light. Zhoom had years of his life sucked away from the treacherous Sek-Duat. And Serenity...I still have nightmares even to this day. We had lost the war against Valrith, and now Serenity was nothing more than a human meat puppet by Caitiff, a darkness spirit...we were so close to winning. And now she was gone. Forever. Why couldn't I have saved her? First Tomix, now Serenity...who next? Oh yeah, I failed Midnight too. I left him alone for five long years. I wasn't there for him. He had been waiting so, so long for me...can't I do anything right? Apparently not.

I don't know. All I know is that I have to keep fighting. The Rose is after me already, and I know that my old allies have been awaiting my return. I just hope I don't screw up again, and get someone else killed. I just hope I can do this, because truthfully, I don't know if I can. But I'll die trying if I have to. It's the least I can do to redeem myself and to honor the memories of Tomix and Serenity.


End file.
